Giving cool real estate products, tools and news a Big Encore

All of those necessary social media accounts are easy to update from anywhere if you have the right smartphone. Here are three upcoming releases to keep an eye out for:

1) HTC Droid Incredible 4G LTE available July 5th from Verizon Wireless. This phone runs on the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS and has a 1.2GHz dual core Qualcomm Snapdragon Processor. On top of that, its 4-inch screen makes it pocket-sized and it has an 8 mp camera.

2) Samsung Galaxy S III available July 6th from AT&T and Verizon Wireless. While this phone also runs on the same Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS, it has a larger screen, more available options (including the fact that it comes in different colors) and a 4.8 inch display.

3) Apple iPhone 5. Rumors have this phone being released sometime this fall – September, 2012 is the most popular guess. As for which features it’ll have upgraded and what new things it’ll do? Your guess is as good as any of the tech blogs and only time will tell.

The new Microsoft Windows 8 phones are getting set for a fall release. No exact models or specifications are available yet, but look for phones made by Nokia and HTC to debut from the big four (Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile) carriers. And, although RIM is in trouble, their Blackberry 10 operating system is said to be a “game changer” by CNET, so, Blackberry fans, be on the look out for that one as well.

Every real estate agent and mortgage broker already knows that owning a cell phone or two is necessary in order to do business. Being able to answer questions when out of the office is an absolute must, especially when it’s a buyers market. But which smart phone should you go with?

The main two to choose from are the iPhone in all of its iterations, and those that use the Android operating system. There is also a Blackberry apps market and Windows phones, but those are not overly popular, since most people use one of the other two. Here’s a quick breakdown of the real estate apps available for the iPhone and Android phones:

iPhone: There are plenty of apps available for the iPhone that can benefit both agents and buyers. Some are related to popular websites, like Trulia, Zillow, Realtor.com and Homes.com. Others are aimed at buyers and contain specific information about real estate, as well as breakdowns by state and location. Some larger realty companies also have their own apps, for example Coldwell Banker and Century 21. One in particular, entitled Real Estate Math is dually handy, since agents and mortgage brokers can do the math quickly and easily from anywhere — just in case a client needs a monthly mortgage estimate. On top of that, there are bunch of social media apps so that your Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn status can be updated from anywhere.

Android: While the number of real estate related apps is high, most of them are geared toward the buyer. Some realty companies (and even a few individual agents) have their own apps available, and some are designed with a specific state or location in mind. There are also apps containing information about investing, vocabulary, and more than a few titled along the lines of “Real Estate 101″ but, again, those are geared more towards buyers than realtors. That said, the MLS listing app could come in handy for sellers and brokers as well as buyers, and there are the ubiquitous Twitter and Facebook apps to make updating your social media accounts easy.